The Big Bets University Leaders Are Placing on Graduate and Adult Enrollment

For nearly a decade, graduate programs were a source of enrollment growth for many institutions. This growth was spurred, in part, by an unfavorable labor market, the rise of distance education, and a global pandemic. During the height of the pandemic, graduate and adult-serving programs were many institutions’ only source of enrollment growth as undergraduate enrollments suffered.

Now, for the first time since 2013, the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) estimates that graduate enrollment declined in 2021 and 2022. Despite this decrease, graduate and adult student enrollments are still higher than pre-pandemic levels and a bright spot for many institutions struggling with persistent undergraduate enrollment declines. The result: growing pressure on graduate enrollment, at a time when this market is becoming more challenging.

Although graduate and adult learner enrollments have fluctuated in recent years, one thing remains evident: higher education leaders are prioritizing graduate and adult-serving programs and enrollment. One hundred percent of surveyed university presidents and provosts indicated graduate and adult learner enrollment is a strong or moderate priority.

To learn more about how higher ed leaders are approaching graduate and adult enrollment, EAB surveyed more than 60 university executives, including presidents, provosts, vice presidents of enrollment management, and chief business officers from across the United States. Use the survey findings in this report to shed light on how your institution’s approach to graduate and adult enrollment compares and to spur conversations on campus.

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